With the price of vehicle fuel becoming a greater share of the average household income, more people are turning to fuel efficient vehicles to reduce transportation costs. Some of the most fuel efficient vehicles rely on electrical motors or hybrid technology. A fuel efficient vehicle relying on hybrid technology includes a fuel efficient internal combustion engine operating in conjunction with an electric motor. The electric motor relies on batteries that are contained in the vehicle for power.
Hybrid vehicles may operate either on battery power or the internal combustion engine. During operation of the internal combustion engine, the batteries are charged to provide electric power for the vehicle's needs, including propulsion. When the vehicle is not in use, a power cord may be used to plug some such vehicles into a conventional 120 volt (or 240 volt) alternating current (AC) power outlet. An AC to direct current (DC) converter allows the conventional AC power outlet to charge the batteries of the vehicle.
An all electric vehicle uses only battery power to power a motor that provides vehicular motion. Such electric vehicles must be periodically connected to a power distribution system (“power grid”) to receive power to be stored in its batteries.
As electric vehicles (hybrids and all electric vehicles) become more ubiquitous, there is a growing need to plug in the electric vehicles when they are not in use. Typically, this is not a problem when the consumer (e.g., the vehicle operator) plugs their electric vehicle into a receptacle at their home because the power consumed during charging of the batteries of the electric vehicle is included in the consumer's electric utility bill. However, there are many instances when the consumer wants or needs to charge the batteries of the electric vehicle when the electric vehicle is not at the consumer's residence such as when the user visits another residence (e.g., a friend's home), drives to work, drives to a place of business (e.g., a restaurant, business office, shopping center, etc.), drives to a parking lot for mass transmit (e.g., a subway parking lot), or drives to another third party location.
Plugging the electric vehicle into the power grid when the electric vehicle is at a third party location typically will incur monetary fees associated with the power consumption of the electric vehicle (to charge the batteries) to the power customer (e.g., the owner) associated with the third party location. The power customer of the third party location is hereinafter referred to as the “third party power customer”. The third party power customer often will not wish to pay for the power used to charge the consumer's electric vehicle. As power grids are currently implemented with a meter at each location, a system does not currently exist that allows an electric vehicle operator to charge their electric vehicle when the electric vehicle is away from their home (at a third party location) without that visited third party location incurring monetary charges.
Moreover, with the increase in vehicles relying on battery power, a vast amount of stored power is provided that may be distributed (discharged) back into the power grid. Thus, the power stored in electric vehicles may supply power to the power grid to thereby reduce the power demand at times of peak power demand. The location (e.g., a residence) at which the electric vehicle supplies power to the power grid is then credited (e.g., a reduction of the electric utility bill) for the power supplied by the electric vehicle. Currently there is no means for crediting the operator of the electric vehicle with the power supplied by the electric vehicle when the vehicle is away from their home (at a third party location). In addition, currently there is no means of communicating with and determining the location of the electric vehicles so that they can be intelligently controlled (e.g., by the operator of the power grid) to supply power to the power grid during times and at locations of peak power demand.
One of more embodiments of the present invention supply such solutions and other advantages.